New Right View of the Family

Who is the New Right?

It is important to understand who the New Right is before considering their outlook on the family.

The New Right refers to a group of thinkers and a set of policies based on right-wing political beliefs and values. In the UK, the New Right aligns with and influences the Conservative government and its policies, having originated in the 1980s.

Generally, supporters of the New Right have conservative views on economic and social issues. They believe in minimal government intervention and oppose social policies and welfare. New Right theorists also espouse traditional values and lifestyles.

It is important to note that the New Right is not a structural theory in the same way as functionalism or Marxism.

Functionalism and the New Right

Although the New Right does not comprise a structural theory, it is similar to functionalism.

• Both are based on consensus in society; they believe society is inherently harmonious
• Both suggest that different roles in society (e.g. men and women) are based on natural, biological differences
• Both propose that the family is a key institution of society for family members to seek comfort
• Lastly, both hold that the nuclear family is the 'normal' family type.

Now that we have looked at some overlaps with functionalism, let us explore the New Right perspective on family.

Fig. 1 - The photo shows a typical photo of a nuclear family.

The New Right perspective on the family

As mentioned above, the New Right view on the family is based on a firm belief that the nuclear is the 'normal' and ideal type of family. We will look at key terms and values in New Right theories.

New Right view of the nuclear family

According to the New Right, the ideal nuclear family consists of:

• a married mother and father couple
• a breadwinner father
• a stay-at-home mother

This type of family is the 'bedrock' of society as it is an independent unit that does not seek welfare from the government. It is self-reliant.

In addition, the children are cared for by two parents with a clear division of roles in a stable household. To the New Right, the nuclear family is the best way to raise children.

New Right view of family diversity and the decline of the nuclear family

The New Right believes that there is a decline in the number of nuclear families in modern society due to higher numbers of single-parent families, cohabiting families, and higher divorce rates.

Supporters of the New Right believe that the reduced significance of the nuclear family leads to many problems in society, including crime, poverty, over-reliance on the welfare state and a decline in morality.

As such, the New Right advocates a return to 'traditional' family values, influenced by morality. It opposes the rise of other types of families and favours the conventional two-parent family structure.

What are 'other' types of families?

The New Right objects to the rise of other family types, including any family that does not fall within the traditional two-parent family structure. These are:

• single-parent (also called lone-parent) families
• reconstituted families
• cohabiting families
• non-heterosexual families

Therefore, the New Right also opposes social policies that support these other types of families. Such policies:

• are generous with welfare benefits for single parents and unemployed individuals ('handouts')
• make it easy (or easier) to get a divorce
• give rise to alternative family structures, such as the legalisation of same-sex marriage

Consequences of welfare benefits

According to New Right theorists, generous welfare benefits are harmful because they create a culture of dependency on the state. They believe if there are welfare incentives for single parents, this will encourage unplanned/teenage pregnancies; and that some may even have multiple children so that they can collect more welfare.

Likewise, if there are welfare incentives for unemployed people, they will continue to rely on them instead of taking responsibility and finding employment. Eventually, society will come to rely on the state solely.

Consequences of divorce

New Right thinkers argue that if it becomes easier to get a divorce, more marriages will be easily abandoned, leading to higher levels of 'other' family types (such as single-parent and reconstituted families).

This also has dire outcomes for the children of broken marriages, as they are more likely to experience poverty, skip school and commit crimes.

Consequences of alternative family structures

Policies that make it easier to adopt alternative family structures mean the nuclear family will no longer be the dominant family type and will lose its value and significance in society.

Fig. 2 - Divorce leads to 'other' family types, including single-parent and reconstituted families.

Policies that promote the nuclear family

The New Right supports social policies that favour the traditional two-parent family structure. It believes that it is possible to reverse the decrease in nuclear families by implementing the following policies:

• removing or cutting down on welfare benefits for single-parent families and unemployed people
• making it difficult to obtain a divorce

This would force more people to seek employment and stop relying on the state. Teenage pregnancies and single-parent families would decrease due to the lack of incentives. Additionally, more couples are likely to stay together if divorce is difficult.

Evidence to support the New Right view of the family

We will go through some key evidence that supports the New Right's views on family.

Research into fatherless families

In their research into families and children without father figures, Norman Dennis and George Erdos (1992) found that single-parent families (especially single-mother families) are not ideal for raising children. They found that children, especially boys with absent fathers, have:

• poorer health
• lower levels of educational achievement
• worse life choices
• higher levels of unemployment and crime compared to children in two-parent families.

Dennis and Erdos argue that although all children with absent fathers are affected, the effects are substantial for boys as they grow up without a male role model and lack primary socialisation.

As the boys grow into adults, their behaviour and choices have negative consequences for the rest of society. This creates an entire generation of men that display antisocial behaviour.

Dennis and Erdos also assert that men who grew up without fathers are also likely to become absent fathers themselves, which will create a generational cycle. Therefore, single-parent families are disadvantageous for children, especially boys. The ideal family structure is the nuclear family, as it avoids these issues.

Statistics on single-parent families

We will look at statistics from various sources regarding single-parent families and their children.

Iain Duncan Smith, Work and Pensions Secretary (2010)

• Single-parent families are twice as likely to experience poverty compared to two-parent families.
• Children from broken and unstable homes are nine times more likely to become young offenders.
• Only 30 percent of young offenders grew up in a two-parent home.
• Family breakdown costs the UK between £20 billion and £40 billion per year.

The Marriage Foundation (2019)

• Unmarried, cohabiting couples are unstable; even though only 21 percent of couples are unmarried and cohabiting, they are responsible for 51 percent of separated families involving children (Benson, 2017).
• 60 percent of single parents receive welfare benefits (such as for housing) compared to 10 percent of couple parents (Department for Work and Pensions, 2015; ONS, 2015).

Fig. 3 - Single-parent families are twice as likely to experience poverty

Harry Benson and Stephen McKay (2017)

• The link between broken families and teenage mental health problems is well established. Mental health problems are more prevalent in children with separated parents.
• Teenage boys are more likely to experience behavioural problems, and teenage girls are more likely to experience emotional problems.
• One in eight teenagers report poor mental health; poor home life was cited as a factor (ONS, 2015).

Charles Murray

A key New Right thinker, Charles Murray, believes that the traditional nuclear family structure is under threat. The disintegration of this family type leads to increasing levels of single parenthood and teenage pregnancies. Murray argues that this creates an 'underclass'.

The cycle perpetuated by the underclass creates a culture of dependency on the state and its benefits. If children are socialised into this culture, it can span across multiple generations.

Therefore, Murray believes that the state should intervene as little as possible to promote individual responsibility and prevent this over-reliance on the state.

Evaluation of the New Right perspective

We will carry out an evaluation of the New Right perspectives on the family.

Strengths of the New Right view of the family

• There is substantial evidence that shows that children are generally better off in two-parent families.

• There is also evidence to show that the nuclear family is declining.

Criticism of the New Right view of the family

However, this approach is not without its flaws: let's consider criticisms of the New Right view of the family.

• Robert Chester (1985) argues that despite its decline, the nuclear family is still the dominant family type and most children are raised by two parents.

• The New Right assumes that a two-parent family does not have any negative aspects at all. However, the children can still be significantly adversely affected if both their parents live together but are in constant conflict, an empty-shell marriage, or are experiencing poverty.

• The New Right is criticised for being intolerant of family diversity, including single-parent, same-sex, reconstituted, and unmarried cohabitating families.

• Functionalists agree that the nuclear family should be the main family type; however, they are not against family diversity.

• Feminists argue that the New Right ignores the oppression of women by men in a nuclear family structure, including domestic abuse. It considers the New Right to be outdated as it promotes traditional gender roles and divisions of labour, which benefit men at the expense of women.

• Marxists claim that the nuclear family benefits capitalism in many ways, which is largely ignored by the New Right. The New Right ignores the subjugation of the proletariat (working class) through the nuclear family structure.

• Deborah Chambers (2001) argues that the media creates unjustified 'moral panics' about non-nuclear family types, which are then used to justify welfare benefit cuts.

• It is seen as an unsympathetic, victim-blaming perspective, especially towards single mothers. New Right thinkers overlook the fathers who have left their families and the strength it takes to raise a family alone.